Crimsonwings92: I am loving all the reviews I'm getting from everyone! You guys are so sweet and I'm so happy that you're liking the story. This chapter is definitely longer than the last two, an accomplishment I take pride in, and it's rather sweet if I do say so myself. So, without further ado, enjoy!

Shout Out To: XXTakaraXX, Durimu, all the guests that have left me such wonderful messages, DoctorWhotaliaandtheOlympian s, and anyone else who reviewed and I may have missed. You guys are awesome and this story would not still be going without you.

Disclaimer: Rise of the Guardians belongs to Dreamworks and all that nice jazz.

A Frosty Season

Chapter 3: Lunch Date

So…Maya ended up not calling or texting Jack at all…and it's been two weeks.

Yes, you're absolutely right, that's terrible of her to do, but the poor girl was just too nervous. It wasn't like she didn't try to contact him; once she even got as far as actually going to his name in her contacts and choosing his number to send a text to, but every time she got ready to write something, she chickened out and bailed on the mission. What was she supposed to say to him? 'Hey, Jack! I'm that girl you saved from freezing to death in a lake! How are you?' How was she supposed to go about talking to him? What if he had forgotten about her and only proceeded to dismiss her as some chick he had met once? Seriously, the guy was gorgeous and Maya was almost certain girls were always around him, so there was no way he would honestly remember her without the girl having to jar his memory and make it awkward for the both of them. With that in mind, in order to protect herself and her dignity, she just didn't contact him and she also avoided going to the park for she had a feeling he spent a lot of his time there. She had every intention of avoiding the park for about another month, a length of time that she considered appropriate for Jack to really forget about her, but her sweet little cousin, Malcolm, really didn't give a crap about her intentions.

"Maya! Maya!" the child yelled as he went toddling into the den where his cousin was curled up on the couch with her laptop, completely focused on her game of Plants Vs. Zombies, "Park! Park!"

She blinked when she heard that single word, the gears in her head having to jump start in order for her to think about what the little boy just requested. Malcolm wanted to go the park; Maya did not. Putting her game on pause and turning her attention to her cousin, she gave him the sweetest smile she could muster and prepared to do whatever she could to dissuade him.

"Oh? The park? You want to go to the park?" she repeated, watching him nod his head vigorously and giggle in excitement, "Well…how about we go to the library instead?!"

"No."

"Oh, okay."

"Park! Park! Let's go to the park!" he insisted, Maya now desperately trying to come up with a different alternative.

"Uh…how about the Play Pen downtown where all the little kids are? You can make some new friends!"

"No! Park!"

"No Play Pen, huh? Well, there's always the aquarium today."

"Park!"

"Petting zoo?"

"Park!"

"Toy store."

"Park!"

"Bakery."

"Park!"

"Don't you even care that I almost died at the park?!"

"I want to go to the park!" Malcolm shouted, plopping himself on the ground stubbornly as he folded his little arms over his chest and pouted. Apparently he didn't.

"Oh dear Lord," the teen mumbled as she scratched the top of her head; she had been able to ward her cousin off of going to the park for the past two weeks, but now, he just wasn't having it.

"Maya, just take the child to the park." Ida, the girl's mother, instructed as she was passing by the den, having heard the child's yelling, "Let him run himself ragged out there so he doesn't break anything in here."

"Darn it," the teen mumbled as she closed her computer and placed her feet on the carpet.

"And stay away from the lake!" Ida added.

"Oh yes, mother, because I had every intention of trying to drown myself in the frozen lake once more after my last attempt failed," Maya shot back sarcastically, picking up a British accent that made her cousin laugh, "How on Earth did you see past my clever façade of trying to save a little girl's life when in reality I was trying to commit suicide? Bravo, mother, bravo- okay! I'm sorry!"

When Ida took off her slipper and held it above her head threateningly, the teenage girl covered her head and cowered away from the woman though her giggling revealed that this was all in good fun. Her mother had indeed hit her before with her slipper, multiple times on various occasions actually, but it was never abusive and so, Maya always treated it as a joke. Even the older woman smiled humorously at her daughter before she put her slipper back on and made her way to the foyer. Once she was gone, the teen looked at her cousin and held back a chuckle.

"She's abusive, isn't she?!" She whispered loudly to the wiggling child who then laughed and said, "Park!"

"Yeah, yeah! I heard you the first three million times! You want to go to the park so badly, go get dressed then you little monster!" Maya exclaimed jokingly, her words like a trigger that caused Malcolm to shoot out of the den and run right to his room where he did as he was told.

The girl just sighed and shook her head, running her fingers over her black curls before she made her way to the kitchen for a glass of water. She shivered slightly when her bare feet touched the cold tile and she skipped on over to the cupboards for a cup before skipping over to the sink, trying to ignore the constant shock her feet were getting from the chilly floor. She filled the glass with water while bouncing on her toes and chugged it down like a woman in the desert. Once finished, she washed the glass out and placed it in the dish rack and turned to start getting dressed herself when her hazel eyes landed on the vase in the middle of the table. It held the bouquet of pink roses with the tips frosted a sparkly blue that Jack had gotten for her on the day he came to visit her at the hospital. She had done all she could to take care of the flowers, cutting the stems whenever she felt they needed to be cut and keeping the vase filled with fresh water and also replacing the size of the vase when the flowers started getting shorter from having the stems cut. She may be nervous about seeing him or contacting him, but she still cherished those roses because he gave them to her and it was an extremely kind gesture that any guy had ever done for her. Walking over to them, she touched the petals gently and allowed herself a moment to actually think about Jack, about his wintry white hair and sparkling blue eyes and his wonderfully deep voice that made her shiver. Her expression grew soft when she remembered his smile and his playful nature, the girl letting a small giggle escape her lips.

"Jack Frost…that name will stick with me, too. Whether I want it to or not," she muttered to herself, walking around the table and towards her room to start getting dressed.

It took her about 15 minutes to bundle up properly since it had only gotten colder these past two weeks, but thankfully it wasn't snowing that day so it wasn't too, too bad. Malcolm had been ready before her and had entered her room while she was getting dressed to urge her to hurry up. His excitement was apparent and even though Maya didn't necessarily want to leave the warmth of her grandmother's house, if it meant seeing the smile on that child's face, she would do it…reluctantly.

"Alright, little man! You ready?" she asked him, earning a squeal of excitement as the child ran around in a circle, "Oh yeah, you definitely need to get all that out your system."

Taking his hand, she went to the door, helped him into his boots before putting her own on, called through the house to her mother that they were leaving, and then stepped out into the cold world for another day of fun. They walked the fifteen minutes to the park, Malcolm immediately running over to the playground while Maya hung back and giggled while watching him. He immersed himself in a game with the other little kids, all of them immediately becoming 'best friends' for the time being while they ran around playing tag. The seventeen year old girl walked on the outside perimeter of the playground for a little while, keeping a watchful eye on her cousin lest he run off down to the lake again, before she decided to take a seat on a vacant bench where it gave her perfect view of the child. After a few minutes, her eyes strayed over to the bottom of the slope a ways off from where she sat, the lake staring back at her. It had to be perfectly frozen by now with no chance of there being thin ice, but she couldn't help but feel anxious about it, especially when she saw a couple of kids, older than the little girl she had saved, made their way down to the lake with ice skates over their shoulders.

'I hope they'll be okay…cuz I am not going back down there again,' she thought to herself before a sigh escaped her lips and she closed her eyes for just a second.

"Well, look who it is."

The voice that spoke in her ear forced her eyes to snap back open and on reflex, Maya cried out in surprise and bolted to the end of the bench away from the voice. Looking back to see who had snuck up on her, she felt her heart do two things once she recognized the person standing there: one, she felt it try to practically shoot out of her chest in shock and two, she felt it drop into her stomach and do a little jig to make it churn. Jack Frost blinked his big blue eyes and then chuckled at the expression on her face as he shook his head, his white hair moving with the action.

"Wow. A little jumpy, are ya?" he teased her as he folded his arms loosely over the back of the bench and then bent down to be eyelevel with her.

"Well you scared me! What did you want me to do?!" Maya argued back.

"Say hi?"

"Oh, but of course! Why didn't I think of that?" That British accent was back as she retorted sarcastically to his reply while rolling her eyes, "The logical thing to do in a situation where one is startled is to say 'hi'! It is so obvious now! Next time, when I'm being mugged on the street, I'll be sure to keep that in mind."

Despite the sarcasm, Jack found himself laughing so hard he had to hold his stomach. Tears were even pricking the corners of his eyes as he laughed and doubled over. Maya didn't think it would really be that funny, but the laugh was contagious and she found herself smiling and giggling into her hand.

"Oh man, you are seriously one funny girl," he commented once he calmed down, the boy wiping the tears from his eyes and then moving around the bench to take a seat next to her, "That is rare in most girls these days."

Maya shrugged and giggled, "I don't think it's rare; most girls actually are pretty funny. I just have a kind of funny that even boys can understand."

The boy hummed as he lounged back against the bench, his hands stuffed inside his coat as he watched the little kids play around in front of him. It was here that his companion sitting next to him remembered that she hadn't called or texted him in two weeks like he had asked and suddenly felt very nervous and almost scared that he would bring it up. She could handle most confrontations, but a confrontation from an incredibly cute guy? She's sure to choke.

'Please don't bring it up. Please don't bring it up. Please don't bring it up,' she prayed over and over again in her head.

"So get this," he started, startling her out of her thoughts, again, "I've most of my time these past few weeks having snowball fights with the kids here at the park, playing hockey with my friends, going to the movies, and wondering, with a breaking heart, what on Earth I did that was so unimpressive to you that you didn't call or text me."

He said the last part half-heartedly, a hint of humor in it accompanied by his signature grin, but she could tell that he was probably just a little bit hurt by her failure to contact him. She unconsciously flinched at his accusation, laughing nervously as she tried to focus her eyes on anything but him, her gaze landing on her baby cousin who was chasing around another little boy while the both of them shrieked in delight.

"Yeeeaahhh, I uuuhhhh…" she drawled out as she tried to think of the right words to tell him, eventually trailing off when he reached out and started playing with the string of her hood, "Can I help you?"

"Hm? Oh, no. I'm just waiting for the excuse you're trying to think of," he replied with an exaggerated smile, his eyes closed and all his teeth showing.

Maya gave a short cry, "I'm not coming up with an excuse! I just didn't know what I would say to you if I called or texted! I froze up, got nervous, and chickened out!"

"…You got nervous?" he repeated with a knowing grin that only grew when she paused, blinked her eyes, and then pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Oh good Lord, did I really just say that out loud?" she mumbled to herself, feeling mortified that she just gave him the truth unwarranted.

Jack could only laugh at her expense, playfully pulling on one of her curls from underneath her winter hat, "Funny and cute, I like that combination."

"Man, shut up!" Maya countered as she launched at him and mussed his hair in retaliation, her laughter ringing out and blending with his as he swatted at her hands.

She calmed herself a little from her laughing and looked down at his face, his ears, nose and cheeks pink from both his laughing and the cold nipping at his skin. He opened his eyes and their gazes locked for what felt like hours, each one gazing into the soul of the other, hazel green mixing with ice blue. Maya's hands, once teasingly tangled in his white locks, slowly slid down to where she was cupping his face in her palms without even realizing it. Jack did, though, and glanced at her hands that were holding his cheeks, their warmth heating his skin and actually making him blush a little. With a sharp gasp and a jolt, the girl came back to the present and released him quickly while feeling all the more embarrassed.

'What the hell is wrong with you?' she chastised herself, turning her face away from him to try and calm herself, 'Touching him like that is a no-no! You should know better!'

Jack watched as she fought with herself, grinning in amusement and finding that he was liking this girl more and more as the minutes went by. He wasn't going to lie, he had actually been looking forward to getting a text or something from her just to let him know that she was alright and…thinking about him as much as he was thinking about her and he had been thinking about her a lot. But when the days went by and still nothing had come through, he began to feel disappointment and hurt. He thought he had messed up somewhere between when he pulled her from the lake and the day he went to the hospital to see her. Was it too weird that he went to go see her? Did he invade her personal space too much? Was he looking too far into their relationship, which, at that point, was pretty non-existent? All of those questions ran through his head day in and day out those past two weeks and soon, that disappointment turned into slight anger as he thought that perhaps she was just as stuck up and full of herself as all the other girls he had encountered.

Not the case. Turns out, Maya is just shy…how adorable?

He was glad he was wrong about her, but that didn't mean he was going to let her off the hook so easily for failing to contact him. With a secretive grin, he pushed aside her curls quickly and blew warm air into her ear. Jack was delighted when he got the reaction he wanted out of her, Maya jumping up with a shriek by the sudden gust and covering her ear with a scandalized look on her face.

"Dude!" she cried, hoping her cheeks weren't as red as they felt, "What the hell was that for?! Sneak attack much!?"

"That, dear Maya, was just a little payback for you giving me the cold shoulder," he answered smoothly, leaning back against the bench again leisurely while looking at her from the side with this playful smirk on his face.

The girl rubbed her ear and tossed him a withering glare, "I wasn't giving you the cold shoulder! I was nervous!"

"I also decided," he continued, ignoring the way she rolled her eyes to the sky, "that you owe me for giving me the cold shoulder."

"I wasn't giving you-"

"So we're going on a date."

"I-excuse me?" she stopped and blinked at his words, his bright smile seeming to become even brighter.

"You're going on a date with me. A lunch date. In fact, we're going to go right now," Jack jumped up and moved to take her hand, "I know this great place just up the street that-"

"I can't," Maya stopped him, stepping back before he could get a hold of her hand.

The white haired boy frowned at her refusal, disappointment very apparent on his face, "Why not?"

"I have Malcolm." She pointed to the toddler that was just running past them towards the slides before turning back around to run in the other direction, following whatever his little mind told him to do, "He's only six. I can't just leave him here by himself to go on a date."

"Oh," Jack sighed in relief with a smile, "Is that all?"

"That and I don't have any money."

"Who says you were paying?" Jack countered, squatting down to be eye level with the child just as he was teetering up to the teenager, "I'm the one taking you on a date so of course I'm going to pay and you can bring Malcolm, too."

"I can't ask you to do that," she argued, her brows furrowing a little at the thought.

"I want to," Jack smiled at her as he picked the child up in his arms and hoisted him up on his hip, "Besides, the little guy might be hungry by now. What do you say, Malcolm? Are you ready for some lunch?"

"Samich!" the little boy exclaimed, waving his hands around before clapping them cutely.

The teenage boy smiled victoriously at Maya who only quirked an eyebrow at him, "See? He's in."

Before Jack could speak another word, the child in his arms grabbed his face in his tiny hands and forced him to look at him. Malcolm's big brown eyes looked at Jack's face before they strayed up to his hair where he proceeded to grab at the white locks curiously.

"White boy," he commented as he tugged on the snow white hair.

His words were the said out of the simple innocence of a child who didn't understand ironic or situational humor, but Maya understood it and couldn't help but burst into laughter as the white haired boy blinked at the toddler's comment.

"Oh god! Hahahaha! He straight up called you white boy!" she laughed, slapping her knee, "Oh, it's funny cuz he doesn't even know what he did, hahahaha!"

She was laughing so much that she ended up on her knees with her arms folded over the seat of the bench with her forehead pressed into her wrist. Jack just glared weakly at her as Malcolm continued playing with his hair and rolled his eyes.

"He's talking about my hair, you know?" he informed her, looking back at the little boy and smiling when Malcolm grabbed his nose in his tiny hand.

"That doesn't stop it from being funny! Cuz you are white!" Maya retorted, the last of her laughter sputtering out as she tried to regain control of herself.

She took a deep breath as she got to her feet again and allowed for a small giggle to make its exit before she nodded and bounced on her toes, "Okay, I'm done. I'm cool. It's over."

Jack smiled and offered his hand to her, "So, it's a date?"

"Give me back my cousin and I'll go on this date with you," she said with a grin, holding her arms out for the child.

Jack handed him over without argument and Malcolm wrapped his arms around his cousin's neck as he started rambling on about all the games he played with the other kids. The teenage boy smiled at the two of them and began to lead them in the direction of the restaurant he was talking about, discreetly slipping his hand into Maya's and grasping her slender fingers in his warm grip. The girl blushed, but didn't pull away from him and continued to listen to her cousin relay his stories.

It really wasn't that far of a walk the restaurant they were going to, about another ten minutes from the park. It actually turned out to be a cozy little diner with those old fashioned, red and white striped seats and shiny yellow tables with waitresses wearing yellow dresses as the uniform. The trio took a seat in the corner of the diner near the window where Malcolm was entertaining himself by fogging up the pane and drawing little doodles in it. Both Jack and Maya watched with laughter in their eyes, the girl tickling her cousin and adding her own touch to his pictures.

"So is he…your brother?" the white haired male asked, looking between Maya and Malcolm who were sitting next to each other.

"Close. He's actually my cousin," she answered, nudging the child into an upright position when he began to fall backwards on her lap, his eyes following the frost designs on the window all the way up to the ceiling.

"Oh. Is he living with you?" Jack continued, opening is palm up on the surface of the table and grasping the child's hand when Malcolm poked his fingers.

"Um…more or less, yeah," she cautiously replied.

"More or less?"

"We're all actually staying at my grandmother's house for the holidays."

"Your grandmother, huh? That would be…Ms. Annie, right?" the teenage boy inquired thoughtfully, trying to remember.

Maya's brow furrowed in confusion, "Yeah…How do you…"

"I met your mom and grandma and Malcolm at the hospital when I went to visit you," Jack replied to her unfinished question.

"Oh, right, right, right! I almost forgot and they told me that, too, haha."

Jack smiled at her little giggle, only taking his eyes off of his date when one of the waitresses came up to the table with two menus in hand. She was quite pretty with dark hair up in a ponytail, white skin, and these pretty bright purple eyes that surprised Maya when she first saw them. She wore colorful green feather earrings and had the sweetest smile on her face. Her name tag read 'Toothiana'.

"Hey there, Jack. Welcome back," she greeted the teenager, her eyes sweeping over to Maya and Malcolm, "New friends?"

"Hey Tooth. Yes and no; this is Maya and her little cousin Malcolm," Jack introduced the relatives as he took the menus from the young waitress and handed one over to his date, "Maya, this is Toothiana, but I just call her Tooth. She's a college student studying to be a dentist."

"That's cool. It's nice to meet you, Toothiana," the dark-skinned girl smiled at the older woman and nodded her head.

Toothiana only beamed brightly at Maya's smile and immediately dove towards her mouth, "Oh my goodness, your teeth are so white and pretty! They're beautiful!"

Her fingers were pulling at the teen's lips to try and get a better look, starting to ramble on and on about all the mechanics of dental hygiene that Maya was apparently practicing from what she could see. Jack just sighed and shook his head in amusement.

"Hey, Tooth," he said to get the woman's attention, "Fingers out of mouth, please."

"Oh, right! Sorry, but they really are beautiful. Almost as beautiful as Jack's!" She leaned in close to Maya and whispered with a giggle, "Don't his teeth sparkle like freshly fallen snow?!"

The teen girl shifted her eyes for a split second before she smiled sarcastically and replied, "I wouldn't know. I have yet to do a proper dental inspection on him."

Toothiana just giggled cutely and patted Maya's head, "Oh, you! You're so adorable!"

"Why does everyone insist on calling me cute or adorable?" the younger female asked with narrowed eyes.

Jack and Toothiana answered together, "Because you are."

Maya paused then, while pointing at them, said, "Don't ever do that again."

The two friends shared a laugh at the girl's expense before Jack cleared his throat and turned to Toothiana, "So anyway, Tooth, Maya here is actually my date for the afternoon."

The woman gasped in delight and snapped her eyes back to the girl, "Really?! How cute! Jack, you have wonderful taste in girls…but, um…" She wiggled her fingers at Malcolm with a curious look on her face, "If it's a date, then why is there a child here?"

"I was already at the park with Malcolm when Jack asked me to lunch and said I could bring him with us," Maya answered, stroking her cousin's head affectionately, "He was hungry anyway, so it worked out for all of us."

"Oh ho ho, so I'm guessing there won't be any heavy making out, then?" Toothiana teased while wiggling her eyebrows at the two teens that went wide-eyed at her question.

"Tooth! Not cool!" Jack hissed in embarrassment.

"I'm going to pretend you didn't even ask me that question," Maya retorted, playing it cool despite the way her cheeks warmed up and she now found it difficult to look Jack in the eye.

"Hahaha, alright, alright," the waitress waved them off, "How about I start you guys off with some drinks? Jack?"

"I'll have a coke," he answered, Toothiana quickly jotting down the order.

"And Maya?"

"What do you want to drink, Malcolm?" The teen looked at her cousin who started to bounce around in his seat, "Pop! Pop!"

"What color?"

"Purple!"

"He'll have grape soda and I'll take some hot chocolate if you have it," the hazel-eyed girl replied as she smiled politely at Toothiana.

"Coming right up!"

The waitress bounded away to get the drinks, leaving the two teens and the toddler to look through the menus to decide what they wanted to eat; "Man, I just can't understand you or my cousin ordering soda when it's already below zero outside," Maya commented with a shake of her head, grinning at her cousin as she opened the menu for him.

"It's not below zero; it's at least 15 degrees outside," Jack argued with an amused smile.

"It's freezing!"

"It's not that cold."

"It's freezing!"

The handsome boy laughed freely at the emphasis in her voice, the light in his eyes gentle as he observed Maya and Malcolm together. "Maya, Maya! I want this sandwich! It's big and has turkey and roast beef and it's huge! Like HUGE!" the child exaggerated, blowing his cheeks up and spreading his little arms wide, "And it comes with french fries and-and if I don't finish it, I can take it home and share it with grandma and auntie."

"Aww, that's so sweet of you, sugar bear!" Maya gushed, using a name she thought of just off the top of her head, as she was known to do for a lot of people when in a good mood, and pinching his cheeks before kissing his forehead, "Wow, these prices are pretty good. I might have to bring everyone here next time."

"Yeah, I like coming here 'cause, like you said, the prices are good and the food is even better," Jack agreed, "So…I'm guessing you don't like winter very much?"

Maya looked up at him curiously before she just shrugged and gave her attention back to the menu, "Not particularly. I mean, I don't hate it, but I don't enjoy it that much either."

"Why not? Bad experience with winter?"

"You mean aside from crashing through a frozen lake to the icy depths below? No, not really. I just don't find what's so great about it. Everyone makes a big deal out of winter, but I just don't see it."

"How can you not see it?!" the white haired teen exclaimed, excitement blooming on his face, "Winter is the best season ever! There's snow days and snowball fights and ice skating. Frost covers the windows of your home and the cold air nips at your nose and ears. Christmas lights gleam off of the white of the snow and there's just excitement in the air!"

"Yeah, along with black ice that causes massive accidents on the roads, thin ice on which anyone could fall through unexpectedly and die freezing to death. There's also blizzards and sleet and blackouts and let's not forget the hundreds of people, every year, that are stranded in airports because of snowstorms and can't get home to their families for the holidays. Yeah, winter's an awesome season."

Jack flinched at the cutting criticism she directed at his favorite season, but smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head because he knew she had a point; "Uh, yeah, that happens, too, I guess…but really and truly, winter is wonderful, Maya."

A shiver ran down the girl's back at the way her name just rolled off his tongue, but she tried to hide it as best she could while her date continued speaking in a low, soft voice.

"It brings kids joy as they play out in the snow with their friends. It can help bring families together as they sit in the living room with each other in front of a blazing fire and share stories about their day. And…it's also perfect for couples…for lovers…" he reached out as he said this and took her dark hand in his pale one, his thumb caressing her fingers, "Because they get to wrap each other up in their arms and hold them close to stay warm or share a kiss under the mistletoe or go on walks together as the snow falls around them with their hands intertwined together. Doesn't that sound nice?"

He raised his eyes to hers and Maya felt her breath hitch right in her throat. His blue eyes, so very bright and clear, seemed to be glowing before her and they were filled with warmth and happiness and the excited innocence of a child as well as the sweet softness of…She felt she recognized that look, but she just couldn't be sure. Nevertheless, she felt her cheeks growing hot, something that they seemed to do a lot where Jack was concerned, and looked down at the table as a bashful smile spread to her lips and she giggled into her other hand. The boy across from her tilted his head down to try and catch her gaze again, a warm smile touching his lips.

"Why are you laughing?" he asked with a small chuckle, keeping his hold on her fingers.

"Because," she started, looking back up again and giving him the perfect view of her hazel eyes that were, again, more green than brown at that moment, "You sound like a hopeless romantic, hehehe…and I think it's cute."

Jack paused, blinked, and then blushed a light pink across his cheeks at her words, but he didn't take offence to them and merely accepted them as they were. She said it was cute, after all, so that must mean she liked it, right? If only a little? He hoped so. Becoming bold, and brave at the same time, the teen boy lifted Maya's hand to his lips and placed a gentle kiss to her knuckles, smiling flirtatiously at the girl after doing so. A huge, shy smile spread across her lips and she palmed her face while giggling to try and ward off the embarrassment she was beginning to feel. She was giggling uncontrollably now, but it was mostly due to her nerves getting the best of her and the fact that she didn't know how to respond to Jack's smooth little move.

"Okay! Got the drinks!"

Maya had never snatched her hand away from something or someone so fast in her entire life.

Within half a second she had the hand that Jack had been holding neatly folded in her lap while her back went ramrod straight and her face turned blank, a defense mechanism she had actually developed during Junior High to keep the teachers from getting suspicious of her when she did something bad. The boy across from her was left with his hand suspended in the air as he blinked in confusion; she had pulled away so fast, he didn't have time to react. However, the stunned look on his face melted into a smile and he chuckled humorously at the interesting girl he couldn't get out of his head, even if he tried.

Toothiana seemed to remain perfectly oblivious to the intimate moment the two teens had shared prior to her returning. That or she was doing a damn good job at hiding the fact that she saw them. Either way, she didn't say anything as she passed around the drinks for everyone, Malcolm shouting joyously when his glass of grape soda was set in front of him. The toddler grabbed the straw that was offered to him, stuck it in the fizzling drink and began to slurp it up with abandon, making his cousin shake her head while giggling.

"Alright, are you guys ready to order?" Toothiana asked as she got her pen and pad of paper out, ready to go.

Jack looked at his company, catching Maya's eye and her smile and Malcolm's adorable giggles as the toddler jumped up and down in his seat. The teen boy grinned at the two relatives before he looked back to the waitress and nodded his head.

"Yup, sure are!"

The orders were given and the young waitress quickly took off to have the food prepared as the trio continued to chat happily while waiting for their meals. It didn't take long for Toothiana to return and once lunch was in full swing, so was the conversation and the laughter and the giggling and the teasing and the playful banter. Jack usually always had fun no matter where he was or what he was doing, but he couldn't remember the last time he had such wonderful company as Maya and even little Malcolm. The kid was adorable in every aspect of the word and a down right riot; he was funny and innocent and had an imagination to give Dr. Suess a run for his money. He wasn't afraid to talk to Jack and he even seemed to really like the teenager who listened attentively to his stories about polka-dotted aliens from the planet Guron that was once invading Earth for its supply of pillows with a smile on his face, a laugh to offer, and his own imagination to add to the mix.

Maya, on the other hand…she was just something else. She was quick and funny and never let a moment get awkward even if it had the premise to do just that. She laughed with her whole body and smiled as brightly and warmly as a blazing fire. Even though he called this a date, and she didn't disagree, it lacked all the nervousness and butterflies and insecurities that usually came with dates; Jack felt completely at ease and comfortable with Maya…and he didn't want to let that go. Lunch soon came to an end and Jack paid for the meals as well as left Toothiana a very generous tip, as he usually did every time he went into the diner, as they said good bye to the waitress. It was getting pretty late in the afternoon and Malcolm had lost some of his fire, signaling that it was time for his nap. Jack knew that it was probably time for them to part ways and felt it even more when they walked through the door and faced each other, but he wanted to spend just a little more time with Maya.

"Well, we better get back now. This little guy is due for an afternoon snooze," the girl said with a grin as she held Malcolm in her arms, the child laying his head on her shoulder tiredly.

She shifted him around a bit, getting comfortable, before she looked at Jack and smiled gently, "Thanks for the lunch; that was really sweet of you to invite me and Malcolm, too. So…I guess I'll see you-"

"Let me walk you home.

Maya blinked after she was cut off and shook her head as if clearing it of fog, "Um, I'm sorry, what?"

The boy's lopsided grin made her heart do flip-flops as he took a step closer and repeated, "Let me walk you home."

"You don't have to do that. It's probably far out of your way, anyway," she answered, looking a little worried that she was just inconveniencing him somehow, like he felt he had to walk her home because she was a girl or something like that, "I'll be just fine walking alone."

"I'm sure you would be, but that doesn't mean I'm going to let you," Jack replied impishly, circling around her, "Besides, I like talking to you and I want that to last just a little longer."

His words were said with a playful air, but the look in his eyes told her that he was very serious. So, without any more objections, because she wasn't one to make a big deal out of something for too long, the teens began their trek back to Maya's grandmother's house. The girl found herself walking slower than usual, unconsciously doing so because she wanted this time with Jack to last as long as possible, and actually keeping good conversation with him still. Her little cousin was quiet the whole walk back to the house and at one point, Maya thought he had fallen asleep in her arms, but when she looked he still had his eyes open. Apparently, he was fighting the sleep until he got to the warmth of his bed so he could fully enjoy his nap. Pretty soon, sooner than either teen wanted to be honest, they arrived in front of the cozy little one story house that belonged to Ida Rhodes. They stopped in front of the gate and turned to each other once more, Maya smiling shyly while Jack admired how cute she looked with the child in her arms.

"Thanks for walking us home, Jack," she said quietly, seeming to become shyer than she's been the whole day.

"It was my pleasure, Green Eyes," he replied, his deep voice turning just a tad husky as he continued to stare at her.

"My eyes aren't green," she argued playfully, repeating the same thing she said to him two weeks ago at the hospital.

"They're more green than brown. Especially right now," he played along, the two of them sharing a laugh.

"Are you going to be okay going home? It's not too far away, is it?"

"No. Actually, now that I look around, I just live a couple blocks from here."

"Oh, how fun," Maya replied, giggling at the coincidence.

Suddenly, Jack reached out and began patting down her hips and the front of her jacket, causing Maya to jump at the action. Within record time, he slipped her phone from the front pocket of her coat and smiled victoriously as he turned it on and went to her contacts. It took him all of 15 seconds to accomplish his secret task, the boy smiling when he shut off her phone and put it back in her pocket. He then retrieved his own phone, which had gotten a new message, and turned it on before showing the girl his screen. It showed a message with her number and name; she blinked and looked at him.

"Now there's no reason for us not to keep talking," he told her, shaking his phone back and forth with that same bright grin, "And trust me, you'll be hearing from me a lot in the future."

She couldn't stop the laugh that left her lips as she shook her head and rolled her eyes, "You are one crazy kid, you know that?"

The girl then turned to go inside the house, but before she could even unlock the gate, Jack reached out again and took her hand in his. Maya whipped around to face, shocked to find him suddenly closer than he was before.

The smile on his face was gentle, but shy as he said, "Maya, won't you let me show you how wonderful the winter season can be?"

"U-Uh…huh?" she stammered, earning a chuckle from him.

"I know you believe that it's more of a nuisance than anything and nothing special, but I can prove to you that it's much more than that! That it's fun and exciting and…the best holiday to spend with someone that you really like," he told her excitedly, his fingers lacing loosely with hers, the action making her jump and her heart palpitate.

She stared into his eyes, seeing the determination there and feeling that she just couldn't shoot him down heartlessly, but that didn't mean she had to fully agree either; "If that's what you want to do, then fine. Whatever makes you happy, but be warned. I'm not easily swayed, Jack Frost," she informed him, shrugging a little.

"I figured you'd say something like that, but that's okay. That's one of the things I like about you anyway," he retorted, moving closer to her, his taller stature practically looming over her if only by a few inches.

Maya bit her bottom lip and shook her head with a nervous laugh, "I can't even tell if you're joking anymore."

Jack paused as he studied her, nearly drowning in her hazel green eyes before he smiled again, "You'll be able to tell soon enough."

He drew ever closer still and again, for one heart stopping moment, Maya thought he was going to kiss her as his lips drew near and his breath came out warm against her face. She quickly looked down to avoid it, but the boy was hardly deterred as he switched directions after a second's pause and kissed her cheek. It felt like fire had suddenly erupted under her skin as a hot blush burned from her cheeks up to her ears. Jack only continued to surprise her more by lightly rubbing his nose against hers in an eskimo kiss, laughing at her shocked expression.

"Later, Maya. I'll text you," he promised, stepping away from her backwards and waving before making his way down the street to return to his own home.

Maya was left speechless after his little stunt, her cheeks still burning both from the blush and the place where he kissed her. She probably would have still been standing there, watching his back as he walked away, had Malcolm not shifted and groaned irritably at being kept from his nap inside the warmth of the house.

"…Sorry, buddy," she apologized, finally looking down at him, "Let's get you inside so you can warm up and take a nice long nap."

With that, she opened walked through the gate and up the walkway to the house where she welcomed the warmth and left behind the world of snow, a world she would get to know very well and very soon.

End Chapter

Crimsonwings92: Hehehe, wow. Bold move, Jack. How many of you ladies would slap a guy for just reaching out and taking your phone without asking you first, regardless of if he was cute or not? I'm sure if it was Jack, you probably wouldn't. Hahaha! Anyway, please review this story; constructive criticism is always appreciated and just reading nice little tidbits always makes me smile. See you lovelies in the next chapter! Ciao!